Yankee Candle Advent Calendar (Review)

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As the month of December approaches, I'm turning my mind to advent calendars and whether to get boring chocolate ones for us all, or to try out a different type. Last year I made one with The Boy for him which had a small gift each day alongside a chocolate coin, and it's something that I still have time to do with him.

For myself though, I'm very pleased that I've been sent the octagonal Yankee Candle Advent Calendar to review which features scented tea-light candles behind each door (two behind Day 24). There are six scents in the calendar:

  • Snow In Love (a blend of creamy, comforting woods and Wintry powder freshness)
  • Balsam & Cedar (balsam, cedar wood and juniper berry)
  • Merry Marshmallow (a soft concoction of marshmallow and vanilla)
  • Red Apple Wreath (sweet apples, cinnamon, walnuts and maple)
  • Snowflake Cookie (festive cookies)
  • Sparkling Cinnamon (cinnamon with a hint of cloves)

Yankee Candle Advent Calendar

For the purpose of the review, I did have to open some of the doors and burn the candles a little to test them out. I do like scented candles, however I'm always concerned that they will be very strong or akin to air freshener or toilet cleaner, especially if they mention woodland! However, the Yankee Candles were delicate and not even the 'Snow In Love' scent (which I was apprehensive about) put me off them. The candles are coloured festively, and made a lovely, Christmas feature when I surrounded them by sliced oranges, pine cones and cinnamon sticks.

The Yankee Candle Advent Calendar retails at £21.99 which is obviously more expensive than a chocolate calendar. However, as a special treat for the festive period which can also be used to add to the Christmassy feel of the house, I think it's really good value for money. There are 25 candles which work out at 87p each (30p more than their boxsets of tea-lights), with each providing 4-6 hours of fragrance and it is a wonderful selection pack to try various aromas.

I was sent this product for the purpose of this review, my opinion is honest and unbiased.

Win A Magic Elf or Fairy Door (#Giveaway)

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Last year we had a special little visitor come to stay for the festive period, Edward the Elf.

I had decided that The Boy was old enough to enjoy the wonders of an Elf on the Shelf, but refused to pay £30.00 for quite frankly, a hideous looking thing which every other family in the world seemed to have. Therefore I set to making one on 29th November, seriously underestimating the amount of time it would take to sew one by hand. I finished it at 2.15a.m. on the night of 30th November, with sore fingers and eyes that could no longer focus. Nonetheless, Edward was a welcome, and slightly mischievious, member of the family for the advent period who reported back to Father Christmas on The Boy's behaviour, both good and the slightly not so good. He was also his little friend for the lead-up to Christmas, and The Boy loved him.

Edward The Elf

Edward returned to the North Pole to assist Father Christmas on Christmas Eve, but I've begun to think about his return and what things he and The Boy will get up to during December. Therefore when I was sent a Magic Door to review, I knew that it would definitely help hype up the return of the Elf.

A Magic Door is a small door set in a Regency door frame with a moving knocker and door handle. It fits flat against a wall or a chimney breast, and can be used to allow elves access into the house, not just as Christmas time as I can see it could be very useful for the Tooth Fairy too!

I've got skirting boards on all the walls in my house, so I decided that the best place for it would be against the chimney breast, next to the fire that Father Christmas travels down. I fitted it up using double-sided sticky-tape (as I knew The Boy would yank it off the wall with the enclosed Blu-Tack), scooped some ice (from the back of the freezer) in front of it, sprinkled the provided magic dust over the ice and knocked the front door secretly.

As predicted The Boy came running to see who was there, only to discover no-one, but as he walked into the living room he spotted the Magic Elf Door and was enchanted!

Magic Elf Door

He was desperate to open it up and see what was behind, but it doesn't actually open and I told The Boy that it only opens one way and only for the person who has the key! We then had a highly amusing conversation about who might come through it, at no point did he mention Edward (hoping he won't be offended) but we did have some amazingly imaginative suggestions from him!

We then had to spend twenty minutes in silence watching the door for any more activity, although The Boy realised that whoever it belonged to was unlikely to come through with us watching. He did however see a hedgehog poke his nose through the door, which is fine because he's 4.5 years and if he wants to see a hedgehog, then he can see one!

I've got a lot more planned for the door before Edward's arrival on the 1st December, and I'm sure The Boy will throw a few curve balls at me as well (like the chocolate coin that his ice-cream van was supposed to leave when it went through to stock up on ice-cream at the North Pole, took a while for me to find one in the cupboard!), but it's also going to be a lot of fun. And earlier The Boy knelt down and whispered to Father Christmas (who was just behind it) that he'd 'like a remote control car please'. Very informative!

Magic Doors are available to buy from The Magic Door Store for £20.00 and come in a variety of colours. However, I am very fortunate to be able to offer one to a lucky reader of TheBoyandMe. Simply fill in the Rafflecopter form below for the chance to win one.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I was sent this product for the purpose of this review, my opinion (that I love it!) is honest and unbiased.

Chevrolet Orlando (Review)

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A few months ago (too many to be specific about, it's embarrassing), a very nice young man knocked at the front door and handed me some sparkly, brand-new keys to a sparkly, brand-new car; a seven-seater Chevrolet Orlando LTZ.

Chevrolet Orlando

Chevrolet very kindly sent me the Orlando to review for just over a week while we went on holiday to Dorset. We took my parents with us on holiday, although they drove down in their own car, and it was a very useful car to use whilst we travelled around the area on day trips, etc.

I've never driven a seven-seater before so was apprehensive about its size in comparison to my Renault Scenic, but in all honesty it wasn't that much bigger in any dimension; a few inches longer, taller and wider at the most, which made it easy to drive.

And it was an absolute dream to drive.

There are a huge amount of features on the Chevrolet Orlando, but as I am neither Jeremy Clarkson nor James May, I am not about to launch into the technicalities of it all although I will point out the basic model has:

  • 7 seats in three rows
  • 6 airbags
  • ABS anti-lock brakes
  • Air conditioning
  • Electronic Stability Control (ESC)
  • Radio/CD with Aux-in
  • Central console storage with 2 cup holders
  • Height adjustable driver’s seat
  • Electric power steering
  • Electric front windows
  • Low flat loading space
  • Electrically heated and adjustable door mirrors
  • 17” alloy wheels (Orlando LTZ)
  • Rain sensor windscreen wipers (Orlando LTZ)
  • Automatic headlights (Orlando LTZ)
  • Auto-dimming rear view mirror (Orlando LTZ)
  • Power folding door mirrors (Orlando LTZ)
  • Optional satellite navigation with rear parking camera (Orlando LTZ)

There are several big selling points for the Orlando, which it is indeed marketed on; flexibility, stylish interior design, safety and performance. Please view the Orlando technical specifications page for more information on safety, I'm not an expert and not happy to pass my opinion on it, and have someone rely on that. However, I'm more than happy to chat about the other areas!

Bootspace vs. More Seating

Chevrolet Orlando

The boot is a large space, the surface area is larger than that of the Renault Scenic which I currently drive and the normal 'middle' row folds down flat to give more space for transporting larger items. The boot also holds two additional seats which fold up out of the floor. Due to the third row, the parcel shelf is retractable from a metal pole which fits into brackets on the sides of the car. In theory, this is great. In practise when the third row is in use, the only place to put the bar is on the floor of the second row, hardly practical. The other issue with the parcel shelf is how high up it is positioned; ridiculously I could get more into the boot of my Scenic than I could the Orlando, purely because my boot is more square whereas this is very flat. This is one of the compromises of having a third row.

Three Rows & Seven Seats

Chevrolet Orlando

The other compromise of having a third row is leg space. The middle row seats are fixed position with very little foot space for a long journey, I actually couldn't handle sitting anywhere but in the front because I often suffer from restless legs and couldn't bear not being able to stretch them out. And the bottom right picture in the collage above shows how much foot space there was in the third row. The only person who sat in that for the week was my six-foot tall husband who was happy to stretch his legs across the row, indeed getting to the third row is incredibly tricky and involves clambering across a folded down middle row seat; there is no access from the boot.

Bearing in mind the middle row contains three seats (in a bench format) we were actually unable to fit three people across the back due to The Boy's car seat; therefore five people who should have been able to sit in two rows actually had to utilise the three rows in order to fit in. The middle seat in the middle row has a handy fold-down arm rest with two in-built cupholders which proved to be very useful on the longer car journey.

Satellite Navigation & Parking Camera

Chevrolet Orlando satellite navigation

The Chevrolet Orlando has a very easy to use satellite navigation system in-built with a t.v. screen which also displays the image from the rear parking camera. I've never used a car satellite navigation system before and it was very simple to work out after a few attempts and saved our bacon a few times. The Orlando also has a rear parking sensor which is displayed on the screen and has two projection lines based on the angle of the tyres. My husband (who has perception of depth issues) loved this feature and used it all the time when reversing, I found it a little off putting at first but soon found myself using it as well.

The Controls

Chevrolet Orlando

Nestling into the driver's seat was like sitting in the captain's chair on a spaceship; every thing I could want to control was at my fingertips, and then some! I particularly liked the controls on the steering wheel. There were controls to flip the wing mirrors in, to control the brightness of the lights and display, you name it, it was there.  The radio also has the option to plug in an iPhone or iPod to access the MP3s and play it through the music system.

The speedometer is analogue which is both surprising considering all the other digital gadgets and gizmos, and a bit difficult to read. I'm sure it was chosen as such to appear 'retro' but with so many cars having digital displays nowadays, it is a strange choice. There is also a petrol gauge which displays how many miles left in the tank and alerts the driver to the need to refill; I have this on my car and find it very useful although slightly disconcerting when it goes off with a range of 45 miles left.

The Chevrolet Orlando has an automatic gearbox, I've never driven an automatic before but I adapted to it very quickly and actually missed it once I handed the car back. As the Orlando LTZ is a 2 litre the power was astounding, acceleration was smooth and the ride on the motorway was wonderful; it really is a dream to drive.

The conclusion that I've come to is that the Chevrolet Orlando is a really nice car to drive, but is not such a great car to be a passenger in if you are an adult sat anywhere other than the passenger seat. It would be a great car for a family with three or four children up to the teenage years, definitely a good car for transporting hoards of children around. This review has proven to me that if we had another child, we wouldn't need to upgrade to a seven-seater, but I certainly would investigate the Chevrolet brand and other cars in their range.

I was lent the car for the purpose of this review, my opinion is honest and unbiased.

Bruce The Spruce: A Christmas Tree Review

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With Christmas just over a month away I'm starting to make plans for the festive season, as I'm sure most mums are. Finding the decorations shouldn't be that much of a problem as they are still in the spare bedroom from last Christmas, waiting for me to sort them out before putting them in the attic.

Rather a large fail there then on my part.

However, my husband will have to go in the attic to get down the artificial tree that we have had for around eight years; it's one of those with a central 'trunk' that the branches are hung off and then plumped up. I've written about it before, and affectionately call it 'The Beast' due to it's gargantuan size and the length of time it takes to construct, but it is beginning to break in places and I have an impatient four year old this year who might not be happy to wait around for two hours while I construct the actual tree before being able to decorate it.

Therefore I was more than happy to be offered another artificial Christmas tree to review in the shape of the Alberta Pine Artificial Tree. During half-term The Boy and I (see, I can be grammatically correct when need be) had fun constructing our new tree.

Christmas tree

It's a decent size and quality artificial tree, consisting of three parts with the branches already attached which fold down and are plumped out to add depth to the foliage. It took us around twenty minutes to put together with The Boy able to help with a lot of it, and when completed it stood at a good height and width; The Boy loved it. There seems to be plenty of space for decorations to fill the tree up, although I felt it was a little sparse in the middle near the trunk. I would also have liked a bit more variation in the types of 'spruce' covering the tree, but there are plenty of other trees in the range which fulfill this.

Priced at £49.99 (down from the original price of £79.99) it is a good quality tree, and fits well into modern-sized rooms. It is advertised as being six foot tall which might be a little generous; I'm 5ft 10" tall and looked the very top of the tree eye-to-eye. However, what's a few inches between friends at Christmas time?

I was sent this product for the purpose of this review, my opinion is honest and unbiased.

Pink Lining Satchel (Review)

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One of The Boy's favourite bags is his lunch bag which we were sent to review by Pink Lining some time ago; Robbie the Robot. It's a fun lunch bag, and although it's a cream fabric it hasn't got dirty or been scuffed about at all since term started in September. The waterproof lining is a Godsend and it's a good size.

We love it.

Therefore when Pink Lining asked if they could send us their new product we were over the moon to say yes. Robbie the Robot arrived in the form of a picture satchel and we couldn't wait to get started drawing a seasonal picture to put into the pocket window in the front.

Pink Lining Satchel

We nipped out into the garden to examine the leaves on a day when he was feeling poorly, taking with us his drink and a snack, which left plenty of space for collecting Autumn treasures; leaves, pinecones and funky twigs which were perfect for a collage.

Pink Lining currently have a competition running to win one of ten of these picture satchels. Very simply, you only need to ask your child to create an artwork on A4 landscape paper and either submit a photo or scan the image, then e-mail it over to Olivia@pinkling.com by Monday 18th November 2013. Any medium is welcome; collage, drawing, painting, pasta shapes! Pink Lining will pick ten winners who will then feature in the gallery and receive a satchel of their own.

I was sent this product for the purpose of this feature, please see the competition page for terms and conditions.

Making Bunting With The Cricut Mini

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I was recently sent a Cricut Mini Personal Electric Cutter which is a rather exciting new craft toy, especially for me. Finding time for me to do some craft has been quite tricky, especially as I always seem to be coming up with new creations with The Boy, but I decided that Hallowe'en was the perfect time to explore what the Cricut could do.

So what is a Cricut?

A Cricut is a cutting machine, similar to a printer in the way that it transfers an image to paper, but rather than laying ink down on the paper in lines the Cricut cuts the paper where the ink lines would be. The Cricut website states that 'You can cut images and fonts on cardstock, vinyl, vellum, fabric, chipboard, and even thin foil at sizes as small as ¼" and as large as 11 ½".' There is an adhesive, A4 cutting mat which the material is pressed down onto in order to hold it in place making it easier for the rounded blade to cut it.

I decided to have a go at making a strand of Hallowe'en bunting to hang in the porch to show the local children we were prepared for trick or treaters (shame I didn't anticipate how many would call, and had to end up dishing out ten Smarties per child from The Boy's chocolate stash!).

The first step when using the Cricut is to install the software for the 'Craft Room', this then loads up an image of the cutting mat, along with the available 'cartridges' (designs and templates which the Cricut can cut out). There is a basic cartridge available with the machine which includes an alphabet, some basic seasonal shapes, one or two card and gift tag projects; certainly enough to be going on with for the novice Cricut crafter.

Mini-cricut cutter

Adding an image to the Craft Room is easily done by clicking on it, then resizing or rotating as needed. I decided to go for a simple pumpkin on orange paper with the letters spelling 'Hallowe'en' in the middle of each one. As these were to be stuck onto black card, the letters were going to be a negative space to provide a contrasting and striking effect. The Cricut cut all the shapes out with minutes and it was simply a case of carefully removing the letters.

The important thing about the Cricut is to adjust the settings for the thickness of the material being used, if it's not set for the right thickness then it won't cut all the way through effectively. Likewise, if the paper is too thin and the thickness is set to maximum then it can tear the edges. Luckily, I spotted that very quickly and a minor adjustment saw a perfect dye-cut through the paper and card.

Finally I glued the pumpkin letters onto the black card, threaded some green ribbon through the holes and hung it in the porch alongside a huge array of pumpkins.

Making Bunting With The Cricut

No wonder all the local children came calling!

—

I was sent the Cricut Mini Personal Electric Cutter for review, my opinions and ideas are my own and honest.

Orchard Toys: Christmas Surprises (Review)

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Orchard Toys have released another winning game which will be perfect to play to help build up the excitement in the run-up to Christmas. And the best thing is that there are two games in one box!

Orchard Toys: Christmas Surprises

The two games in Christmas Surprises use the same game boards and are of the simple dice and collect a counter style; easy and inclusive for all family members over the festive periods. The box includes four double-sided game boards, a set of 24 shaped coloured bauble pieces, a set of 24 shaped (and double-sided) present pieces, a coloured dice, and a shaped dice.

Christmas Surprises is aimed at children from 3-6 years, although I think this could be extended either side depending upon your child's ability level and enjoyment (although as it contains small parts it is technically not suitable for younger children, so they should play it under close supervision), and focuses in two parts on both colour and shape recognition.

Orchard Toys Christmas Surprises: 'Colour Matching Game'

Orchard Toys: 'Christmas Surprises' Coloured Baubles

Very simply in this game, the coloured 'baubles' are laid out in the central playing area face up, with a game board in front of each player (2-4 players recommended). Players take it in turns to roll the coloured dice and collect the corresponding coloured bauble, placing it on their game board. Not only is this good practise for matching the colours between the dice and the baubles, but in theory it's good practise between the baubles and the board.

And I say in theory because unfortunately this is where I need to point out the only slight criticism I have ever made of any Orchard Toys product. The blue on the dice is the same shade as on the bauble counter, but unfortunately on the Christmas tree it is more of a purple shade. And a similar problem arises with the purple; the shade on the game board and the bauble counter is identical, but it's a slightly darker shade on the dice. Essentially the purple on the dice is nearly the same shade as the blue on the game board.

It is a minor issue, and once I explained to The Boy we haven't had any problems at all. But it could be a little confusing for younger children, so something to ensure is explained properly when playing. Nonetheless, we really enjoyed playing this game as it is simple, quick and very attractively designed.

Orchard Toys Christmas Surprises: 'Shape Matching Game'

Orchard Toys: Christmas Surprises - Christmas Presents

The shape-matching game is a little more complicated than the colour-matching one, and therefore would be suitable for the older age in the range.

One the reverse of the game board is a picture of Father Christmas holding a sack with shaped spaces in it. The 24 shaped present counters are laid down on the central playing area with the picture side down and the wrapping paper side facing up. Players take it in turn to roll the shaped dice, identify the shape and select a shape counter to put on their board, each shape counter has a different 'present' on the back so it really is a surprise what Santa will have brought! The counters mustn't be peeked at but placed wrapping paper side up on the board. The winner is the first person to complete their board, and when all players have finished then the 'presents' can be turned over and revealed.

This is the aspect of the game that The Boy found most fun, we even had a little swapping of presents between contestants as he preferred the remote controlled car to the pull-along duck, and Mr. TBaM was most amused to see there was even a Shopping List game as one of the presents. Nice touch Orchard Toys!

The shape-matching game was far more fun to play with The Boy, it has a little more challenge to it than the colour-matching game and the whole concept of finding out the presents from Father Christmas was very enticing. We extended the game by referring to the diamond as a rhombus, and the rectangle as an oblong (did you know that 'rectangle' is the shape family name, and oblong is the specific shape? And that also a square is a rectangle? Trust me, I'm a teacher!)

The educational guide suggests the games develop:

  • social and observational skills
  • memory dexterity
  • and link with Early Learning Goals.

I'd add to this:

  • mathematical skills (colour recognition is first stage pre-school maths)
  • language development (oracy through discussion of the presents)
  • and it can also lead to Religious development (discussion of the ways different faiths celebrate major festivals, what is Christmas?)

Both of these games were so fun and simple to play with that they are the new favourite in our house at the moment. When I ask The Boy which he prefers he points to both. I try again and ask him to choose which he would play if he could only play one; he points to one first and then the other straight after. To him they are just as fun as each other, and surely that's the point of any educational game? If the child isn't enjoying them, then they aren't gaining anything from it.

Orchard Toys: Christmas Surprises is available exclusively through Tesco (not the OT site) for the price of £9.50. Excellent value for two games in one! (And don't forget to collect clubcard points on it too!)

I was sent this product for the purpose of this review, my opinion is honest and unbiased.

Dr. Archy For Planter Fasciitus (Review)

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Around five years ago I developed a painful condition in the arch of my feet which meant that I would end up hobbling along on the outside edge of my feet; hardly safe or practical, let alone looking mighty odd.

The condition I'd developed was something called 'Plantar Fasciitis' which is essentially inflammation of plantar fascia ligament, which is the tight ligament that can be felt running along the base of the foot when the toes are pulled upwards to the body. This ligament is meant to be soft and elastic and not have any painful points along the length of it, however it can be quite common to develop inflammation along it, and while common, it is incredibly painful.

The best way I can describe it is as if there are tiny pebbles pushed into the arch of my foot and the ligament is on fire; it makes it incredibly difficult to walk on and I struggled to find a remedy for it.

I saw a physiotherapist for it who was able to give me some exercises and after around six months, my feet recovered. However, come the Summer months (when my feet were hotter and footwear was less supportive) I developed it again, and I do every year. It's meant that I have to be careful of the shoes I wear; they have to have an arch support and a slight heel of around one inch, flat shoes are the worst to wear.

Earlier this year, I was sent a product to review which helps to treat the pain of Plantar Fasciitis and I was amazed at how simple it was to use.

Dr Archy

The Dr. Archy is a simple massage device which should be used for five minutes a day to massage the plantar fascia ligament. There is an elasticated cuff which is placed onto the foot, and then one of two elasticated rollers is attached and used to massage the area. I preferred to use the ball roller as I found it was able to really access the area of the ligament which was painful.

"Dr. Archy provides the therapeutic benefits of trigger-point therapy (the release of painful muscular knots) and myofascial release (deep tissue work) by stretching, massaging, and relaxing the plantar fascia."

Having struggled to massage my own foot as I am incredibly ticklish, and also found it hard to massage a painful area, using this has been great because I could have the much needed massage without having to touch my own painful feet!

The Dr. Archy retails for £18.95 from J.D.Harris

I was sent this product for the purpose of this review, my opinion is honest and unbiased.

Back To School: Stamptastic Name Stamps

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As we race towards the end of the first half-term of The Boy's Reception year in school, I thought now would be a good time to write my review of the Stamptastic labelling system that I was sent during the Summer holidays. Yes I could have written the review before school started, but I actually wanted to focus on the durability of the near-permanent name stamper on a range of different materials.

Stamptastic is a way of labelling children's clothes and other school belongings that takes seconds, doesn't require sewing or ironing on labels, or indecipherable writing with a Sharpie pen which has bled all over the label. Quite simply it involves a stamp with the child's name on it and an inkpad.

I did The Boy's entire uniform (5 polo shirts, 5 sweatshirts, 3 jogging bottoms, 4 pairs of trousers, 3 pairs of shorts, coat, hat, P.E kit – shorts, daps, t-shirt, joggers, sweatshirt), book bag, lunchbox, lunchbag, and water bottle within five minutes.

All of it, in five minutes.

The process is incredibly simple: order a resin stamp block with your child's name embossed out of polymer, choosing three different fonts and a variety of sizes; and then order an ink pad. Within a week, the set will arrive ready to personalise your child's uniform.

name stamper

The actual stamping surface is 38mm x 15mm so it fitted really easily onto every clothes label that we had, it is also clear and doesn't bleed; it dries within a couple of second. The ink is an oil-based ink, which is the equivalent of a marker pen, but doesn't run.

Stampastic labels

Apologies it's not the entire label but as I have never shared The Boy's name, I decided that would be a bit daft to do so now! However, this close-up shows the quality of the stamped image.

Six weeks after stamping everything, and with the uniform having been washed every week, it is safe to say that on clothing the ink is excellent and has not faded at all! The only thing that it has come off from is The Boy's plastic water bottle and plastic lunch box. This is something that Stamptastic are aware happens, it's to do with the coating that the plastic items have which prevents the ink from being absorbed. However, it's not a problem as it takes less than thirty seconds to locate the stamp set and restamp it!

The stamper costs £8.00 and the ink pad costs £10.00, and I think that is excellent value for money. It's an equivalent price to iron-on or sew-in labels, with the added benefit of lasting a lot longer, and being nowhere near as time consuming! Stampastic gets a big thumbs up from us!

I was sent this product for the purpose of this review, my opinion is honest and unbiased.

Ladybird: Read It Yourself Books (Review)

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Even though he is approaching four and half years old, The Boy still adores Peppa Pig in any format. Therefore when Ladybird asked me if I'd like to review some of the books from their newly revamped 'Read It Yourself' series, and mentioned that they had titles from the pink porcine in their range, I jumped at the chance.

The Boy has been reading CVC words (consonant-vowel-consonant, e.g. cat, dog, mum) for several months now and has a developing sight vocabulary for high frequency words like 'and', 'the', 'this' or 'from'. I was sent two Level 1 books and two Level 2 books:

  • Level 1: For children who are ready to take their first steps in reading;
  • Level 2: For beginner readers who can read short, simple sentences with help.

The books do the right thing in that they provide an introductory page with the keywords on it, and there is also a parents' guide at the front explaining how to use the book.

So far so good.

Looking specifically at a Level 1 book here, the stories are simple and attractively presented with picture cues which can help the reader to ascertain the context of the text. Many of the high frequency words like 'this' or 'little' are repeated throughout, alongside the key vocabulary. But then into a sentence there will be a 'house' or a 'snail', or the one that really flummoxed me earlier was 'says'.

Those are not first stage readers' words.

First stage readers words are CVC words with some of the very highest frequency words, like the books we were reading together tonight which has sentences like 'Biff and Chip set off'. The Boy could work those out because the blends were easy. Segmenting and blending 'house' and 'snail' are not easy; that requires an understanding that 'ou' makes an 'ow' sound (but it can also make an 'oh' sound) and that 'ai' makes a long 'a'. Likewise knowing that 'ay' makes an 'air' sound when put into 'says'.

That's not easy. It is not for children 'who are ready to take their first steps in reading'.

In the Level 2 Peppa Pig book 'Sports Day' there are even more complicated sentences like '"Ready, steady, go!" says Madame Gazelle.' Again, this is supposed to be a book for 'beginner readers who can read short, simple sentences with help.' It's not, this is a tricky book, and although the sentence structures are repeated, the vocabulary requires working out in the first place.

I may seem overly critical here, but I think that labelling these books as Level 1 and Level 2 is not helpful to parents. I'm lucky that as a teacher I have a fairly decent understanding of phonics and how to teach reading. I would hate to see a parent buy these books for their four year old child, pressure them into trying to read it and then put them off the joy of reading.

Most schools seem to use the Oxford Reading tree reading scheme which starts off at Stage 1 or Stage 1+. They will be the books that most Reception children will start to read, and they contain sentences like, 'Dad got on it.' or 'Kipper put on a rug.'

So why the discrepancy with these 'Read It Yourself' Level 1 books?

The added complication is apparent when on closer examination of the back cover, under the bar code, there is a label 'Book banded for school use: Book Band 5 (for Level 1) or Book Band 6 (for Level 2).'

Book Banding is a system that was created to ensure that all the different reading schemes on the market could be compared realistically.

  • The Oxford Reading Tree Stage 1 books which I gave examples from above are Book Band 1.
  • The Ladybird 'Read It Yourself' Level 1 books are Book Band 5.

These books are beautifully presented and attractive. And I am sure that they are enticing and engaging for children to read, but the fact that they are labelled Level 1 is deceptive as it implies (and states) that they are for beginner readers and they are not; they're far more developed than that.

I was sent these products for the purpose of this post. My opinion is honest and unbiased, and based on my professional experience.

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